LITHIUM DEAL: NEGOTIATING A ROYALTY RATE BELOW 10% IS A RIP-OFF & BETRAYS ALL TRUST-Dr. Keskine Owusu Poku
By:Dr. Keskine Owusu Poku
The media is inundated with discussions and justifications from government functionaries on the renegotiation of the lithium royalty rate due the people of Ghana in the Ewoyaa Lithium project.
While the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah and the Chair of the Natural Resources Committee of Parliament, Hon. Collins Dauda, among others have made attempts to rationalise a proposed reduction in royalty rate from the 10% negotiated by the previous Nana Addo government to 5%, their reasons for such a reduction in the lithium royalty rate are clearly untenable and largely based on a misrepresentation of policy reasonings and facts of law.
Dr. Keskine Owusu Poku
The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah is quoted by 3news.com on Thursday, December 4, 2025 to have said in a presser that “this government (the John Mahama government) will not short-change the people of Ghana.
We’ve listened to all the voices and we are taking steps to make sure we win not only the project but also make sure people of Ghana get value for money.”
It is sad to note that the John Mahama government is doing the exact opposite. It is clear that the John Mahama government is short-changing Ghanaians and the reduction in royalty rate from 10% to 5% cannot be best value. On the least, it is a betrayal of the trust the good people of Ghana reposed in him.
The aggregate interpretation of the misinformation and misrepresentation of Act 900 and the rationalisations by government through the sector minister and the Chair of the Committee on Lands and Natural Resources clearly shows that either the government is not on top of issues, have forgotten the nicely articulated position of the ruling NDC on this very issue on December 13, 2023 (then opposition) or someone in government is likely a beneficiary of this ‘sweetheart’ deal. Else, the defences, motivation and rationalisations coming from government do not add up.
The position of the John Mahama government is clearly a rip-off, betrays all trust, remains hypocritical and thus, it is not in the best interest of Ghana. If 10% royalty rate was not in the best interest of Ghana, how can 5% suffice?
The first justification provided by the John Mahama government through the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, is that (as reported by JoyNews on December 4, 2025) “the applicable royalty rate for mining operations, including lithium, in our laws is 5%.”
This choreographed line has also been repeated by Hon. Collins Dauda, the Chair of the Lands and Natural Resources Committee of the Parliament of Ghana, among others. This is a NAKED UNTRUTH intended to misinform, misguide and deceive Ghanaians.
First, reference is made to the NDCs presser on December 13, 2023 on the Barari-Lithium agreement as it exposes the misinformation coming from the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah and Chair of the Lands and Natural Resources Committee of Parliament, Hon. Collins Dauda, among others. In paragraph 7(IV) of the said press statement, the NDC (then opposition) argued:
“It is important to make the point that government’s boastful claim about securing a 10% Royalty under the deal is a celebration of mediocrity.
It is worthy to note that the prevailing royalty of 5% was based on Section 25 of the Minerals and Mining Act 2007 (ACT 703), which provides for a royalty rate of not less than 3% and not more than 6%. This law was amended by the erstwhile NDC Mahama government as far back as 2015 by Act 900, which made the Royalty rate open-ended and subject to negotiations.
Also, the prevailing industry royalty rate of 5% relates to the country’s traditional minerals such as gold, bauxite, etc.
The Barari-Lithium agreement is the first deal for the exploitation of a Green Mineral in Ghana. Therefore, comparing the prevailing royalty rate of 5% to a 10% royalty rate for Green Mineral like lithium is an exercise in mediocrity.”
Secondly, reference is made to the Act 900, which is the prevailing regulation on royalty rate.
The Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act, 2015 (Act 900) removed the fixed rate entirely and empowered the state to determine royalties “at the rate and in the manner that may be prescribed.” This amendment is the governing provision today, and it effectively means Ghana is not bound to a fixed 5% royalty of 2010.
In light of the above, the claim that a 10% lithium royalty rate negotiated by the previous government was unlawful is INCORRECT. Ghana is fully within Her legal rights to negotiate a higher rate particularly for a strategic mineral like lithium.
It is thus surprising that the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah and the Chair of the Lands and Natural Resources Committee of Parliament, Hon. Collins Dauda, have consistently peddled misinformation on the position of the law.
The sad part is that these are people who served in Parliament when these laws were passed and have served in various positions as Ministers and Parliamentary leadership hence, are expected to not only know better but also do better.
I am puzzled at the incentives/motivating factors driving their interest in this 5% royalty rate discussion because they cannot claim ignorance of Act 900?
‘Even’ granted that the law permits only 5%, what is the use of the SUPER MAJORITY in Parliament if they cannot amend such a ‘bad royalty regime’ and negotiate a better deal beyond the 10% royalty rate that they criticised as an exercise in mediocrity?
In a matter between the people of Ghana and a foreign company, why is nobody from government or the Majority side in Parliament interested in securing more than 5% royalty rate for Ghana? Why are they suddenly silent on the 5% when they were not loud and clearly against the 10% royalty rate? Who are they actually serving?
It is instructive to note that the Parliament of Ghana in Article 268 (1) and (2) has the power to ensure that the natural resources sovereignty of Ghana is preserved.
This includes amending mineral laws, including provisions on royalty rate, to safeguard the interest of Ghana. It is this power that allowed the promulgation of Act 794 in 2010 which changed the royalty rate from 3%-6% in Act 703 to a fixed rate of 5%.
It is by the same power that Act 900 was passed in 2015 to make royalty rate a by-product of an open-ended negotiation, effectively taking away the legal ceiling of 5% for royalty rate passed by Act 794 in 2010. For the avoidance of doubt, find Article 268 of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana below:
Protecting Natural Resources
- PARLIAMENTARY RATIFICATION OF AGREEMENTS RELATING TO NATURAL RESOURCES.
(1) Any transaction, contract or undertaking involving the grant of a right or concession by or on behalf of any person including the Government of Ghana, to any other person or body of persons howsoever described, for the exploitation of any mineral, water or other natural resource of Ghana made or entered into after the coming into force of this Constitution shall be subject to ratification by Parliament.
(2) Parliament may, by resolution supported by the votes of not less than two-thirds of all the members of Parliament, exempt from the provisions of clause (1) of this article any particular class of transactions, contracts or undertakings.
Clearly, all that is required of the John Mahama government is the political will to maximise the royalty rate due Ghana in the exploitation of our strategic Green Mineral, Lithium. The Super Majority must be useful to Ghanaians beyond political rhetoric.
The government has also argued that since a royalty rate of 5% is charged on traditional minerals, it will be unfair to charge more than 5% of royalty rate for lithium.
It is instructive for the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah and the Chair of the Committee on Lands and Natural Resources to know that the NDC provided an answer to this excuse from government in paragraph 7(IV) of their December 13, 2023 presser:
“Also, the prevailing industry royalty rate of 5% relates to the country’s traditional minerals such as gold, bauxite, etc.
The Barari-Lithium agreement is the first deal for the exploitation of a Green Mineral in Ghana. Therefore, comparing the prevailing royalty rate of 5% to a 10% royalty rate for Green Mineral like lithium is an exercise in mediocrity.”
The moral question of ‘fairness’ also raises a question of ‘reasonability’. Is the government being fair to the people of Ghana in its attempt to reduce the already negotiated lithium royalty rate from 10% to 5%?
Is it reasonable to call a 10% deal as exercise in mediocrity and later present the same deal but with 5% royalty rate? Who are the functionaries of the John Mahama government advocating for; the people of Ghana or the foreign company?
It is important that the John Mahama government recognises the strategic importance of a Green Mineral like lithium and NOT treat it like the traditional minerals which we have mismanaged over the years.
Another weak rationalisation provided for the proposed 5% is that the price of lithium has fallen on the world market.
One may ask, ‘what has that got to do with a fixed royalty rate?’ Why should that be a factor for consideration when Green Minerals are the most sought-after and with good future prospects?
More importantly, a fall in global price of Lithium is not a reasonable excuse for a giveaway. At the time of negotiating the 10% royalty rate, Lithium sold a little above $2000 per tonne (and not the exaggerated $3000 put out by the Minister). The Atlantic Lithium Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) projects a long-term price of $1,587 per tonne (FOB Ghana) for spodumene concentrate (SC6).
Assuming a 5% royalty rate is agreed based on the Minister’s consideration of a plummeted global price of approximately $630 per tonne, will a new deal be presented to parliament if FOB price goes higher tomorrow?
Certainly NOT! So why is the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources not making a sound policy decision based on long-term projections?
From the evidence and policy considerations above, it is clear that the current state of the lithium deal as presented by the John Mahama government does not serve the best interest of Ghana. It is a total rip-off.
The Parliament of Ghana should not to ratify the deal in its current form.
The Majority in Parliament mum to show purpose and drive in preventing few people from short-changing the people of Ghana. For whatever it is worth, they should make their SUPER MAJORITY count in a positive sense.
The Parliament of Ghana is again called upon to amend the section on royalty rate as was amended by Act 900 to further reflect a floor of 10% and an open ceiling to allow for higher negotiations in all subsequent mineral agreements (not just for Green Minerals) that will be tabled before the house. It is time for Ghanaians to get a reasonable percentage in our mineral deposits.
All well-meaning Ghanaians, the media and civil society must to pay a critical attention to the issues on the Lithium project.
God, has yet again smiled on us with Lithium, after the clear mismanagement of our gold, bauxite, diamonds, oil, forest reserves and water bodies. We cannot and should not allow the lithium to join the long list of mismanaged resources.
The relative silence of Civil Society and Think-Tanks in Ghana is very surprising. This should be a wake up call.
Respectfully, the President of Ghana, H.E. John Dramani Mahama, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, Hon. Collins Dauda, among others should backtrack on their steps to mismanaging the lithium find. Ghana will not accept anything less than 10% royalty rate. In fact, the people of Ghana expected more than the 10% judging for the assurances you gave in the December 13, 2023 presser.
In all dealings, let’s put Ghana first.
…End…
Dr. Keskine Owusu Poku is a political scientist, policy analyst and research with centre-right principles.
